Flood watch, wind advisory Saturday for LI

A flood watch and wind advisory are in effect Saturday as a low-pressure system moves into Long Island, bringing heavy rain and winds, the National Weather Service said.

Rainfall amounts of 11/2 to 2 inches are expected, "with locally higher amounts of up to 21/2 inches" possible, the weather service said.

The wind advisory is in effect Saturday from noon to 9 p.m., as winds are expected to be sustained at 15 mph to 25 mph with gusts to 45 mph to 50 mph, forecasters said.

"Low pressure moving from the Midwest into eastern Canada will drag a cold front through the region Saturday and Saturday night," the weather service said. "This system will tap into the Gulf and Atlantic moisture to produce heavy rainfall . . . "

Light rain is expected in the early morning hours, lasting into the afternoon. The heaviest rain and winds are expected after 6 p.m., weather service meteorologist Lauren Nash said Friday.

Nash said the Jan. 11 precipitation record of .62 inches, set in 2008, is in jeopardy, as is the daily high temperature of 54 degrees, also set in 2008. Highs in the mid 50s are expected Saturday, she said.

So far, January has been a month for the weather record books. Within the first eight days of January, eight records were broken related to temperature and precipitation.

Five had to do with the cold, three of them for record low temperatures, including 0 degrees recorded on Jan. 4. One had to do with rain, and two were for snowfall, including a record high of 6.5 inches on Jan. 3.